Grief
by Hope4443
Summary: Elliot and Olivia take on the case of a teenage girl showing signs of abuse. When Captain Cragen realizes he's linked to the girl he stresses the need to handle the case with care. Once Olivia's emotions cross the line, she finds her life changed for good
1. Abuse

"Hi, we're here to see Mr. Dupree." Olivia Benson approached the desk. She flashed her badge politely and the secretary nodded understandingly. She lifted herself to her feet and made way to a closed door down a small hallway. Seconds later Olivia was joined by her partner.

"What did they say this call was about?" Elliot asked marveling at the trophies and awards adorned on shelves around the office.

"I'm not sure." Olivia shook her head looking at her watch. There were kids sitting in plastic school chairs lined up against the walls. Just as Elliot was scanning them, the secretary's voice chimed from down the hallway.

"Detectives?" she squeaked. "Y'all can come on back." Seconds later she reappeared and smiled at them. Elliot and Olivia squeezed past her and into the hallway. When they arrived at the door a tall, lanky man greeted them.

"Mr. Dupree?" Elliot asked. The man bowed his head and moved out of their way allowing them to enter. "I'm Elliot Stabler and this is my partner, Olivia Benson." Elliot made introductions as Mr. Dupree escorted them to two lounge chairs seated directly in front of a big, crowded wooden desk.

"Thank you detectives for coming out." Mr. Dupree seated himself and ran a hand through his faded grey hair- or what he had left of it.

"What's this all about?" Olivia straightened herself in the chair.

"About a student enrolled here. Her name is Emily Crawford She's a sophomore this year." Mr. Dupree paused.

"Is she in trouble?" Elliot crossed his legs and squinted.

"Um, I don't know. That's why I called you." Mr. Dupree shuffled around the papers on his desk, obviously uncomfortable. "You see, she hasn't been to school in over a week. I've called her home several times but I nobody ever answers."

"Do you call the police every time a student decides to skip out on school?" Elliot shifted himself in the chair, clearly feeling he was wasting his time. Olivia cocked her head, first at her partner but then at Mr. Dupree.

"Of course not. It's just before her absence a few of her teachers reported to me that her physical condition had been catching their attention." Mr. Dupree sighed.

"What kind of attention? Like she was using drugs? Being abused?" Olivia took out a memo pad out of her pocket and slid a pen out of a class cup sitting on the desk.

"Apparently she had been acquiring a lot of injuries and she was starting to look dirty. Her grades also began to drop which her teachers found suspicious." Mr. Dupree picked up a paper.

"Was this out of the ordinary?" Olivia asked as Elliot scratched his head.

"Yes. Emily is a very clean cut, smart girl. Her family is one of most well off of those attending this school." Mr. Dupree handed Olivia the paper. It was a collage of e-mails received from Mr. Dupree concerning Emily Crawford's downward slope.

"You say you haven't had any contact with her family?" Elliot took the paper as Olivia finished looking it over.

"We've tried to contact her mother continuously. We tried the first day she was absent and have continued to do so every day since. Mrs. Crawford's work says she's unavailable and their home phone only goes to voicemail." Mr. Dupree looked from detective to detective.

"What about her father? Any siblings?" Olivia questioned.

"Emily's father died three months ago." Mr. Dupree dropped his head. "He was a police officer killed on the job."

"Sergeant Crawford." Elliot said to himself remembering the headlines.

"Emily has two younger siblings both who attend the elementary school down the street. I haven't had any contact with them but I checked their attendance records to see if they coincided with Emily's." the man shrugged his shoulders.

"And?" Olivia maneuvered herself.

"They've been in school everyday. I also inquired about both of their physical conditions. The principal told me there had been no change and the kids were acting normal."

"How do you think Emily got those injuries?" Elliot started to stand.

"I'm not sure. Our school nurse examined her. You could talk to her." Mr. Dupree stood as well.

"That would be great." Olivia added standing and following Elliot and Mr. Dupree out of the office.

"Let me ask you this, why didn't you report her injuries before she stopped showing up to school?" Elliot asked as they all walked down the school hallway.

"I was unsure. I thought maybe times were tough because of her dad's death. The girl hasn't quite recovered." Mr. Dupree stopped at a white door which was closed. There was a window in the door but it had been covered with construction paper to protect privacy. Mr. Dupree knocked and they waited. When the nurse finally came to the door she opened it just a sliver.

"Can I help you?" she woman asked.

"Ms. McAllister, there are two detectives here about Emily Crawford." The nurse eyed both detectives and then pushed the door open. Inside a student lay on the examination table. Bandage wrappers were everywhere and the students jeans had been rolled up revealing a bloody ankle.

"Can you sit up, Jacob?" Ms. McAllister asked. The young man sat up as directed.

"I have a meeting to attend." Mr. Dupree announced. "Detectives if you need any more help, please don't hesitate to leave your number with my secretaries." Elliot and Olivia both nodded and watched as Mr. Dupree let himself out.

"I'll be with you in just a second." The Nurse looked up. She carefully placed a bandage over the wound.

"Jacob, you can go back to class. Why don't you come back here before homeroom and I'll wrap it better before you go home." The boy nodded and slowly helped himself off the table. As he was getting down he stumbled.

"Be careful," Elliot caught Jacob by the arm.

"Thanks." Jacob nodded again. Then he excused himself.

"Are you sure he's ok?" Olivia asked.

"He'll be fine. He just had a little accident with the volleyball pole in P.E." Ms. McAllister assured her. "So have you found Emily Crawford?"

"We haven't even started looking." Olivia shook her head overwhelmed.

"I examined her before she stopped coming to school. That girl had many injuries." Ms. McAllister waved her hands in the air.

"What kind?" Elliot sat on a stool in the corner.

"Bruises on her stomach. Cuts on her upper shoulder. Two or three cigarette burns on her upper thighs."

"All in places nobody could see." Olivia concluded.

"Were they self inflicted?" Elliot asked curiously.

"I don't think so. She seemed very emotional about them. Not in an embarrassed way, like she was relieved."

"Why did you conduct the examination in the first place?" Olivia boosted herself up onto the examination table.

"She came in complaining of a stomach ache. When I began to press on her stomach she complained of extremely sharp pains. I asked her to remove her shirt and let me examine her further." The nurse positioned herself leaning up against a counter.

"And she complied?" Elliot asked skeptically.

"She hesitated. At the time I thought maybe she was having a pregnancy scare and was afraid I would tell her mom. But I didn't know Emily that well. After a second to think and a little reassurance she allowed me to continue."

"What did you find?" Olivia stepped forward.

"A couple of bruises on her abdomen. She started crying and then showed me the other injuries. She was also complaining of a hurt wrist which was so painful that she wouldn't allow me to touch it at all."

"You didn't call anyone or alert them of signs of abuse?" Olivia approached the counter and looked at Ms. McAllister.

"She begged me not to. Then the bell rang, school was out. She left and I planned on talking to her first thing the next morning, but she didn't come to school." The nurse moved away feeling intimidated by Olivia.

"Who do _you _think did this?" Elliot got up.

"I don't know. Maybe her mother? Emily was a very bright girl. Excellent grades never had any behavioral problems. She hasn't gotten in trouble once."

"Is that all the information you have for us, Ms. McAllister?" Elliot made his way to the door.

"Just one more thing." She took in a deep breath. "Emily didn't really have any friends."

"No friends?" Olivia repeated. "You're telling me a there wasn't a single person in this school Emily was linked to?"

"That's right. She hardly socialized. Wasn't seen talking other than for participation in class. It was weird because she didn't really have a quiet personality. If you started up a conversation with her, she would glow. Her communication skills were excellent."

"Thank you for your help." Olivia walked to Elliot at the door. Ms. McAllister pursed her lips and watched them out.

"There is one more thing I want to do before we leave." Elliot announced at the pair walked down the empty hallway. Olivia didn't say anything; she was too busy reviewing all the information. When they arrive back at the office Elliot approached the secretary's desk.

"Hello, detectives." The secretary looked up and smiled. Elliot returned the smile and leaned down to her level.

"You don't happen to have a picture of Emily Crawford, do you?"

"There's probably one in the yearbook." The secretary pointed to a box filled with hard back yearbooks. Elliot thanked her and grabbed one. He flipped through all the pages until her found her. Next to Emily's name was a picture of a girl. She had curly brunette hair, shocking green eyes, and a glowing smile.

"Liv, look at this." He showed his partner the picture of Emily Crawford.

"You're kidding me." Olivia grabbed the book to look closer.

"Captain won't be happy about this." Elliot shook his head. "Can we take this?" He asked the secretary who politely obliged. Olivia shoved it under her arm and the partners headed to the station house.


	2. Linked

**2. **

"Hey, that's the one girl!" Munch exclaimed as Olivia and Elliot studied Emily Crawford's picture further. Olivia sat at her desk, the book laid out in front of her. Elliot stood behind her, leaning down to examine it.

"I thought it was familiar when the principal said it was Sergeant Crawford's daughter. I just didn't put two and two together." Elliot shook his head.

"Does Captain know yet?" Munch reclined in his chair and hoisted his feet onto his desk.

"No." Olivia closed the yearbook. "Do you know when he'll be back?"

"Not really." Munch shrugged his shoulders.

"The nurse said Emily had no friends. Is that even possible?" Elliot made his way to his own desk and sat down.

"In a school that big? I wouldn't think so. And as pretty as Emily is… I would think she'd be getting some sort of attention." Olivia tried to think.

"Let the fun begin." Munch mumbled under his breath. Olivia swiveled in her chair- entering the squad room was Captain Cragen. Olivia turned back to her desk and looked at Elliot. They heard the Captain unlock his office and enter. After a couple of seconds they nodded at each other and stood up.

"Captain?" Olivia knocked on the door frame of the office.

"Ah, Benson and Stabler!" The Captain smiled at them. "Come on in." The two detectives entered but refrained from sitting down. "How was the call to Carver High School?"

"That's actually what we'd like to talk to you about." Elliot took another step closer to the desk.

"Oh, what's up?" The Captain relaxed in his seat and watched as Olivia and Elliot thought about what to say.

"Um, it's actually about Emily Crawford." Olivia looked to the floor.

"Emily," Captain Cragen raised his eye brow. "Is everything alright?"

"Well, it seems she's been absent for over a week." Elliot rested his hands loosely behind his back.

"Is that it?" Cragen asked.

"No, Captain. The principal says they've been trying to contact the mother but haven't been able to." Olivia knew they were beating around the bush but she couldn't help it.

"They called the SVU down there just for that? Sharon's busy; she probably just forgot to call it in." Captain Cragen waved his arms submissively.

"There's more." Elliot finally took a seat. "The nurse examined her the day before she stopped coming to school. This woman says Emily had all sorts of bruises and other injuries."

"Self inflicted?" The Captain leaned down onto his desk, concerned.

"The nurse didn't know for sure… but she didn't think so." Olivia answered.

"There has to be an explanation for this." Cragen shook his head, certain that nothing bad was happening. "Has anyone checked on her younger brothers?"

"Yeah. Emily's principal called the elementary school. They said the boys were fine and had been in school." Elliot scratched his head. The room was silent.

"I'm very familiar with the Crawfords." Captain Cragen finally broke the silence. "I was great friends with Sergeant Crawford. I've hardly been around the two youngest kids, but Emily…"

"Aren't you her…" Olivia paused.

"Godfather." Captain Cragen finished for her.

"Do you want us to transfer the case?" Olivia asked gently.

"No. This has to be a misunderstanding. Sharon Crawford is a respectable mother. She would never allow any of this to happen." Captain Cragen sounded sure of himself. He got to his feet and walked to the door.

"Where are you going Captain?" Elliot got up from his seat.

"I think before we start making any conclusions we should pay the Crawford household a visit." With that, Captain Cragen opened the door and led Olivia and Elliot out.


	3. Outcry

"Sharon?" Captain Cragen asked as a slender, petite woman opened the door. Olivia and Elliot stood protectively behind their boss as he looked at a woman he knew, but barely recognized.

"Don." She said shocked. It took her only a second- as if she had been holding back- and she flung herself into his arms. She held onto him for a good couple of seconds until she noticed the two detectives standing behind him. Olivia and Elliot looked back and forth from one another, unsure what to do.

"Mrs. Crawford, I'm Olivia Benson and this is my partner Elliot Stabler." Olivia felt uncomfortable but found no other way to break the ice. Mrs. Crawford dismissed the introductions and looked back to the Captain.

"Don, what's this all about?" She looked genuinely confused.

"Why don't we sit down and talk." Captain Cragen suggested. Mrs. Crawford nodded and let them all inside. Nothing on the outside even compared to the majestically beautiful town home. Two boys sat at the bottom of the marble staircase playing with toy cars.

"Hi, I'm Elliot." The detective squatted down to the boys' level. The two gazed up innocently and eyed the crowd. They immediately laid eyes on Captain Cragen. They recognized the man but weren't familiar enough with him for a greeting. Cragen waved at them gently before following Mrs. Crawford further.

"How have you been Sharon? I'm sorry I haven't been in touch." Captain Cragen talked as they walked through the foyer. Mrs. Crawford tried to smile politely but was obviously irked by Detective Stabler's communication with her children.

"Detective," She called as Elliot got left behind. "You can come in here… to the den." She called.

"He's just doing his job, Sharon." Cragen put and arm around her shoulder and escorted her to a couch where they sat down together. Olivia frolicked in the doorway, examining the home.

"His_ job_?" Mrs. Crawford questioned. Meanwhile in the foyer, Elliot was chatting with the two boys.

"I'm Andrew." The bigger of the boys announced as Elliot seated himself a couple of stairs above them. At the top of the stairs was a white painted hallway with six doors. All were open besides the last one on the left. Pictures were placed through out the hallway. Elliot noted that he'd have to look at them later.

"Nice to meet you, Andrew. And who is this?" Elliot laid a hand on the smaller boy. He flinched, but found comfort under Elliot's strong hand. The detective couldn't help but wonder if this action slightly resembled the boys' father.

"That's Michael." Andrew spoke for the boy. Elliot looked at both boys. Both, besides a difference in height, were almost identical. They had straight blonde hair, much like Mrs. Crawford's.

"How old are you guys?" Elliot looked back to Michael. The boy seemed happy to have the company.

"I'm six but Michael just turned five. Right, Michael?" Andrew asked but the young boy didn't respond. Michael was only one year older than his own son, Eli.

"He doesn't talk much, does he?" Elliot asked.

"He's just shy. But he's really smart. He's already in kindergarten!" Andrew exclaimed.

"Wow!" Elliot crawled down a couple of stairs so that he was on the same level as Michael. "How are you today, Michael?" Elliot positioned himself a couple inches from the boy's face. When Michael didn't respond, Elliot made a funny face causing the boy to crack a smile.

"Having fun?" Olivia giggled behind her partner. Elliot stood and couldn't help to laugh at himself. "How are they?"

"They seem fine. Michael doesn't really talk." Elliot pointed subtly at the younger child. "Andrew though is completely fine. No problems talking to me at all. Both seem physically well." Olivia ruffled both of the boys' hair and Elliot made his way back into the den.

"I've been having a hard time with Emily lately," Mrs. Crawford was sitting across from the captain on the couch explaining. "She hasn't been feeling well."

"What do you mean?" Elliot made himself comfortable in a love seat. Mrs. Crawford looked over at him, disgusted.

"Where's that other detective?" Mrs. Crawford started to get up.

"Please, Sharon." Captain Cragen grabbed Mrs. Crawford's arm. She turned and looked at him. Whatever kind of look they exchanged, she felt reassured and sat back down. "What do you mean, about Emily?"

"She just hasn't been the same since Robert died. She's really let herself go." The woman ducked her head into her hands. "This is all my fault. I should be taking better care of her. But with the boys and just trying to help myself…" Mrs. Crawford started sobbing. As she did, the captain looked up to Elliot and gave him the '_I told you so'_ look.

"Sharon," was all Captain Cragen could get out before he started to cradle Mrs. Crawford in his arms.

"Elliot!" Olivia called from the foyer. When Elliot arrived, Michael and Andrew had moved from the stairs to the floor. Olivia was standing the hallway at the top examining pictures. There were tons. Pictures of the boys playing outside the house, younger Emily posing in front of a glowing birthday cake, Mr. and Mrs. Crawford on their wedding day. Olivia was standing in front of one photo in particular.

"Look at this." Olivia pointed at the silver framed photo. It was a glossy print of Emily wearing some sort of costume. "Is that gymnastics?"

"I have no clue." Elliot scratched his head. "Andrew, come here buddy." The boy came running. When he approached Elliot, the detective picked him up. "What's your sister doing in this picture?"

"That's her dance picture. For her dance class." Andrew stated matter-of-factly.

"Does she still dance?" Olivia asked softly. Andrew shook his head. "Why not?"

"Mommy doesn't let her." Andrew whispered as if he didn't want anyone else to hear. "Mommy doesn't like Emily anymore." Elliot and Olivia looked at each other- concerned.

"Is Emily here?" Elliot asked, still holding onto the child. Andrew nodded. "Can we see her?" Just as Elliot finished speaking, Mrs. Crawford and the captain appeared that the bottom of the stairs.

"Olivia, Elliot, back off." The captain sounded angry. Mrs. Crawford and Captain Cragen made their way up and around both detectives. Elliot was still holding Andrew who squirmed out of grasp. He jogged to the bottom of the stairs and stood protectively by Michael.

"Emily," Mrs. Crawford rapped lightly on the door. "Emily, your Uncle Don is here." The woman turned back to the captain and smiled.

"I don't feel well." A bleak voice came from inside. It seemed distant and week.

"Open up, Emily." Mrs. Crawford called again.

"Mom, please." The voice inside begged. Mrs. Crawford turned to the other three.

"Sharon, don't bother. I'm sorry for disturbing you. This was obviously a mistake." The captain sneered in Olivia and Elliot's direction. "Give Emily my best get well wishes when she feels up for it." Cragen stepped forward, hugged Mrs. Crawford and started down the stairs. Elliot and Olivia looked at each other, both confused. They hadn't even been able to verify that Emily was ok… but they knew better than to question the Captain.

"Sorry, Mrs. Crawford." Elliot mumbled. Olivia just glared before following Elliot down the stairs. Cragen waved at Michael and Andrew who watched while not understanding. Olivia swiftly let herself out at Mrs. Crawford stayed upstairs. When the coast was clear, Elliot kneeled back down by the boys.

"Aren't you going to help Emily?" Andrew asked helplessly. Elliot shook his head, ruffled the boys' hair and left.

Outside, Cragen and Benson were arguing. "We didn't even see Emily!" Olivia shrieked.

"I talked to Sharon! Emily's been acting out since her father died. This isn't a big deal!" Cragen snapped. Elliot watched the two as they made way down the side walk to the squad car.

"How can we be sure this woman is telling the truth?" Olivia flew her hands into the air angrily.

"I have no reason to doubt that she's taking proper care of her daughter." The captain retaliated.

"And I have no damn reason not to believe her principal and school nurse." Olivia shook her head furiously. Elliot put an arm around his partner to calm her down. He knew now wasn't the best time to discuss it, but inside his head he could still hear Andrew's voice. "Aren't you going to help Emily?"


	4. Research

"I can not shake this off." Olivia whispered to Elliot as they sat at their conjoined desks. Olivia was shuffling through papers trying to busy herself.

"Emily Crawford?" Elliot looked up quickly. Olivia nodded and clicked her computer mouse a couple of times. The two had been sitting quietly at their desks all morning, failing to actually get any work done. Thankfully things hadn't been too busy. "I wish there was something we could do about it." Elliot sighed.

"I don't feel right about this." Olivia leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and looked up to the ceiling.

"There's not much we can do." Elliot looked back to the captain's office. Olivia remembered the argument between her and Captain Cragen the day before- when he strictly told her to leave the Crawford family alone. She sat there for a moment, thinking. Suddenly she leapt up out of her chair and grabbed her coat. "Woah, where are you goin'?" Elliot hurried to his feet.

"Captain said we had to leave the Crawfords alone. He never said we had to stop investigating." Olivia pushed her arms through her coat and grabbed her keys. She walked swiftly through the squad room. When she exited without even looking back, Elliot looked to the captain's door and then back at his partner's empty desk. He grabbed his own coat and followed Olivia's lead.

"What's your plan?" Elliot pulled himself down and into the car. He strapped on his seatbelt and looked over to Olivia.

"Well, I think we need to go back to the beginning." Olivia put the car in drive and pulled out onto the street. She was concerned about what the captain would do when he found out, but pushed her concerns to the back of her mind and focused on Emily.

"Carver High School." Elliot thought out loud. "But you heard the nurse, she didn't have any friends."

"No, but those teachers were working with her on a daily basis. Somebody's got to have some sort of information we can use to try and piece this mess together."

Carver High School was bigger on the outside than on the inside. It had the selective exclusiveness of a private school without being private. For a public high school, it was one of New York's finest. Everything was clean, the cafeteria food looked edible, and the students were generally well behaved- not qualities that you find in many schools, none the less, all together. Elliot and Olivia walked down a long hallway. Most students and teachers were on lunch break, so the detectives had come at the perfect time.

"Captain is going to be so mad when he finds out." Elliot mumbled as Olivia scanned a copy of Emily's class schedule. They hadn't really said much since they had left the station house. Olivia was silent. "I mean, it_ is_ his Goddaughter."

"Do you trust me, or not?" Olivia stopped walking and looked up at Elliot. Her eyes dug into the partner she knew so well. Elliot couldn't take her stare. He looked down to the white tiled floor and the glare of the florescent lights.

"I trust you." Elliot whispered. It was forced. He didn't hesitate. He meant it.

"Alright then." Olivia patted her partner on the back. "Where should we start?"

"Language arts." Elliot stated firmly. Olivia let out a snort.

"Randomly?" She asked.

"No." Elliot looked over to her and cracked a smile. "With four kids, I've learned that Language Arts isn't all about grammar and spelling like it was back in our day. It's like the ultimate project class. I can't tell you how many personal essays and family oriented projects my kids have come home with." Olivia studied the schedule, running her finger down the row of classes.

"Language Arts 2." Olivia stated. "Mrs. Archer, room 238."

"Mrs. Archer?" Elliot stepped into a brightly lit room. A small, young woman sat in the back corner of the room typing away on a school computer.

"Yes?" the woman stood from her chair and picked up a pair of glasses from the desk and slid them on. The glasses were thick and black giving her a very modern look aside from her knee length pencil skirt and pink sweater set.

"I'm Detective Elliot Stabler and this is my partner, Olivia Benson." Elliot advanced into the room and Olivia followed. The woman approached them.

"The detectives trying to help Emily Crawford?" Mrs. Archer shook their hands.

"Mr. Dupree sent out an e-mail saying you guys were trying to figure everything out." Mrs. Archer smiled, expecting good news.

"Kind of." Olivia looked around the room. It was full of metal desks and in the front was a long dry erase board with story questions listed on it. "We just need a bit of help."

"I'd love to answer any questions you might have." Mrs. Archer leaned against one of the metal desks.

"You seem very eager." Elliot half smiled at her. She looked down, self-consciouslyrned tds, I'r to her and cracked a smile. glare of the florescent lights.e perfect time. t he rned that rned that Language arts ist the class and then back at Elliot.

"Emily Crawford was a mystery to everyone here." Mrs. Archer looked Elliot in the eye seriously. "But through her school work I came to get to know her a little better. She even opened up to me a couple of times. It killed me I noticed that Emily was hurting. I'd do anything to be certain she's ok." There was silence in the room.

"What was Emily like in class?" Olivia finally spoke.

"Quiet for the most part. She was usually good about participation, but other than that she didn't say a word. Extremely bright, though. She had one of the highest marks in my class." Mrs. Archer led the detectives back to a round table in the corner. They all sat down, Mrs. Archer on one side and Elliot and Olivia on the other.

"_Had_?" Olivia repeated.

"Yes. A couple of weeks ago she didn't complete a string of assignments. That brought her down a whole letter grade… which was strange. She'd never had a missing assignment prior." Mrs. Archer talked. Elliot's eyes strayed to the teacher's desk. Sitting in a wooden frames along the edge were a couple of pictures. A couple of them were snapshots of the woman and who Elliot assumed as her husband. The rest were miscellaneous student photos- none with Emily.

"What can you tell us about Emily's family?" Elliot looked over to Mrs. Archer who had to think about this question.

"One of my assignments was a two page paper about members of the student's family. It was one of my beginning of the year projects to help get to know them." Mrs. Archer explained. "A full page and a half of Emily's was about her father. The two were very close. The rest was a brief summary about her mother and her brothers."

"You say Emily seemed really close to her dad. Was there anything other than this paper that could verify that?" As soon as Elliot spoke, Mrs. Archer jumped from her seat and made her way to a file cabinet behind her desk. She opened a drawer near the bottom and flipped through the files. When she found what she was looking for, she pulled the entire file folder out and brought it to the table.

"This." She pulled out blue, construction paper folder. On the front was a picture of Emily standing next to a tall, built, and curly haired man. He was almost identical to Emily. There was no doubt that this was Sergeant Crawford. The resemblance between him and his daughter was shocking. Though there wasn't a single aspect of him that matched up with the two younger boys.

In the picture, a wide eyed and smiling Emily stood with her father. Both were wearing matching running jerseys with numbers pinned to their chests. Sergeant Crawford, had his arm draped over his daughter's shoulder, looking at her.

"Wow." Olivia picked up the blue folder. At the top, in perfect glitter glue penmanship was written, "My Hero". The amount of effort Emily had put into the decoration of the folder was clearly evident. Along with the elaborate title, different colored streamers, corresponding in color with those on her running jersey, were stapled along the corners. Inside the folder was placed a seven page essay.

"It only had to be four pages long, but Emily asked if she was allowed to write more. She had a lot to say." Mrs. Archer explained as Olivia flipped through the pages.

"I didn't know Emily was a runner." Elliot stated looking at the cover picture.

"She was. Kind of. Her dad got her into it as a way to get in shape for her dance season. But then she liked running so much she quit dance. She talks about it in the essay. It was an easy way for her to bond and spend time with Mr. Crawford." Mrs. Archer went on.

"What's in there?" Elliot asked pointing at the file folder she had retrieved the essay from. Mrs. Archer looked down and slid it across the table.

"It's a whole folder of all the essays, papers, Emily has written this year." The folder was exploding with papers despite the fact that school year still had three months left in it. Elliot opened the file and scattered the projects and essays. There was everything from an original one act play to a research paper on Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream.

"Did Emily like this class?" Olivia pushed around some of the papers.

"She excelled at my assignments, but she didn't seem to have a particular interest in what I taught." Mrs. Archer sighed.

"Did Emily ever say anything on a personal level to you? Maybe about her home life?" Elliot proceeded to look through the papers.

"Nothing that really set off any alarms. It all seemed pretty normal. Like how she couldn't wait to graduate and leave home…. And how much she missed her dad…Oh God." There was a long pause and Mrs. Archer started to tear up. "What if she was trying to give hints or something?" The detectives watched Mrs. Archer struggle to compose herself.

"Mrs. Archer, we don't even know for sure if Emily is being abused." Olivia tried to comfort the woman. Elliot watched his partner grab the teacher's hand from across the table. "And even if there is something going on… there's no way you could have foretold any of this."

"Thank you, detective." Mrs. Archer wiped a tear from her cheek and straightened herself up.

"Can I keep this for a little while?" Elliot pulled all of the papers together and pushed them back into the file folder. Mrs. Archer hesitated but agreed.

"Thank you for all your help." Olivia stood and so did Elliot.

"If you need anything else, please just stop by or call." Mrs. Archer walked the detectives to the door. They said goodbye and started down the hallway again.

"I think there's something in here we might be able to use." Elliot said as they walked. Olivia looked over to him and raised her eyebrow. He opened the folder and ruffled through the papers. "Here it is." He announced, handing her a packet of papers stapled together. At the top, in bold black font was the title of an original short story, _Child of the Wild_.


	5. Perspective

"_As the girl stumbles away, she slips and falls into the rushing river. The life giving river that had once led her to the family she loved swept her under, never to be seen again."_ Olivia looked to Elliot as he drove back to the station house.

"What?" Elliot questioned. "The girl dies?" Olivia didn't respond. All she could do was look from her partner and back to the last page of _Child of the Wild. _She reread the sentence. Then again.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

As soon as they reached the station house, Elliot and Olivia couldn't help but share the story with their co-workers. They needed to verify that Emily'sstory really was as alarming as they had first thought.

"Did Emily really write all this?" Munch asked leaning against his desk holding the original story. Olivia nodded.

"This is messed up." Fin mumbled as he read over Munch's shoulder. "You're tellin' me this kid dies? Who writes stuff like this?"

"What I don't understand is…" Olivia started but quickly stopped as the door to the captain's office swung open.

"Three hours of trial paper work only to get a call and find out there's been a mistrial. What a waste of time." Captain Cragen shook his head and approached the group of detectives. Munch stood, trying to act as subtle with the story as he could. Putting it behind his back or handing it off would seem too obvious. Olivia and Elliot exchanged concerned looks.

"What's going on with you guys?" The captain rested his hand on the back of Olivia's chair. When the group was silent he became suspicious.

"Nothin' much. Waitin' for Casey to come back with a verdict from the Valdez trial." Fin tried to come up with something.

"While you're waiting why don't you and Munch take a drive over to the lab and see if the results have come in for that Jane Doe found in the park yesterday." The captain suggested. Munch and Fin hesitated to move, but when the Captain started to look annoyed they did. There was no easy way to do this, but John Munch knew it had to be done. He quickly stepped over to Olivia's desk and placed the story face down in front of her.

"What's that?" Captain Cragen asked pointing at the packet Munch has set down.

"It's nothing." Olivia tried to blow it off, wanting to give almost anything so that the captain wouldn't pick it up…. It didn't work. Almost as quickly as Munch and Fin had fled the scene, the Captain snatched the papers. He studied it for a second- first with curiosity, then with anger.

"This is Emily's." He furiously held it causing the pages to wrinkle in with his grip.

"Captain," Elliot sat up, ready to defend their actions but Cragen cut him off.

"I told you to leave the Crawfords alone." He spoke sternly. Olivia felt slightly like a teenager caught sneaking out with somebody her mother didn't approve of. "You deliberately disobeyed my orders." Olivia and Elliot sat in silence. "Did you go to the house?"

"To be honest, we thought about it." Elliot answered shrugging his shoulders.

"But we didn't." Olivia piped up. "We went to the school and spoke with one of her teachers."

"Her teacher gave us a folder of her work. That was in it." Elliot nodded his head at the Captain's firmly gripped hand. "You should read it. I think you'll be surprised." When Elliot finished talking the Captain hurried off into his office, story still in hand, and slammed the door behind him.

"Well, at least we're not keeping secrets anymore." Olivia tried to look on the bright side. Elliot snorted and couldn't help but smile at his partner. For the next five or so minutes, the detectives sat in a nervous silence. Suddenly, their solitude was broken by the eerily slow sound of the captain's door opening.

"Benson, Stabler, my office… _now_." The captain turned back to his office and picked up his phone. He had just finished punching in the digits when Elliot and Olivia entered. They weren't sure whether to sit or stand so they stood cautiously in the doorway. "Get Dr. Haung over here asap." The captain barked into the phone before slamming it back onto the cradle. Olivia and Elliot exchanged surprised looks. "Sit."

Captain Cragen sat down at his desk and the detectives scrambled to the chairs located directly in front of him. The captain spent a long moment staring down at the story in front of him. Olivia read the bold black letters to herself, _Child of the Wild_. "I don't condone what you did today." He finally spoke. "Going behind my back when I specifically told you to back off… it was disrespectful to say the least and I don't appreciate that in my squad room."

"We were concerned." Olivia looked at her boss. He dodged her excuse.

"Neither of you understand." He shook his head and sighed to himself. "This isn't just another case. The Crawfords were… are… like family to me."

"We're just trying to do our job, Captain." Elliot spoke up.

"I know and I apologize. I shouldn't have interfered. It's just when it involves somebody you know and care about… things change. You look at it from a different perspective."

"Did you read the story?" Olivia asked.

"Yes." The captain picked the papers. "That's why I've called in Dr. Haung. I want him to analyze it before we investigate any further."

…………………………………………………………………………………………

"What do you think?" Captain Cragen asked as Dr. George Haung finished reading the story for himself.

"I think it's a cry for help." The doctor stated frankly.

"How do you know?" Olivia questioned.

"It's simple. She was struggling at home. She used this assignment as a subtle way of hinting and expressing what was happening." He explained.

"I don't see how a story about an orphan girl who runs away and is raised by a pack of wolves is related to Emily." Elliot admitted.

"_Finally the orphan realized she would never feel the same sense of safety and belonging as she once had._" Dr. Haung read out loud. _"As the girl stumbles away, she slips and falls into the rushing river. The life giving river that had once led her to the family she loved swept her under, never to be seen again_…"

"What should we do?" Olivia looked from the captain to the doctor.

"We need to talk to Emily." Dr. Haung stated firmly. Elliot and Olivia both looked to Captain Cragen.

"What are we waiting for? Lets go." The captain ordered and they all started out of the office.


	6. Gone

"I wasn't expecting you back so soon," Mrs. Crawford faked a smile and hesitantly let everyone in. The home looked exactly as neat and pristine as it had the day before, if not more so. In the captain's hand he held a bag of gummy worms- Emily's favorite when she had been younger. Cragen held fond memories of spur of the moment trips to the convenience store in the middle of the afternoon in search for the sweet creatures. Emily used to beg him to take her; it had almost been like their special thing.

"Well we thought it might be best to come check in on Emily seeing as how sick she was yesterday." The Captain held up the bag of gummy worms and smiled. Sharon looked worriedly at the detectives and doctor.

"Is she feeling better?" Dr. Haung stepped forward.

"Who are you?" Mrs. Crawford seemed annoyed.

"My name is Dr. Haung." He introduced himself. When he tried to shake her hand, she refused.

"You brought a doctor, Don?" Mrs. Crawford seemed confused.

"I just want to make sure my Goddaughter is ok." Cragen looked up the stairs. "Can we see her?"

"I don't think that's a good idea." Mrs. Crawford sputtered. All four of them looked at her suspiciously.

"Where are the boys?" Elliot looked around.

"They're at day care." She stated as if it was none of his business.

"Sharon, we're not leaving until we see Emily." Captain Cragen rested his body again the rail of the stair case. Olivia made her way to the front of the stairs and stepped up the first one.

"Detective, leave my daughter alone. She isn't well." Mrs. Crawford insisted. Olivia didn't listen. She hurried up the rest of the flight and headed straight for Emily's bedroom. "Detective!" Mrs. Crawford yelled after her. The woman tried to follow but Captain Cragen grabbed her by the arm.

When Olivia knocked on the door, there was no answer. "Emily?" Olivia asked. Nothing. She took the silence as a sign and slowly opened the door. The walls of the room were painted pink. Not soft pink, but in your face bright pink. The bed was empty and unmade and some of the dresser drawers were pulled out or half open. Olivia got to her knees and searched under her bed. Nothing. She pushed through the racks of clothes in the closet. Nothing. Olivia hurried back into the hallway and repeated the search through every other room. "She's not up here!" Olivia called.

Downstairs, all eyes were on Mrs. Crawford. Nobody moved and nobody spoke except for Elliot who began searching downstairs. He rummaged through the den, kitchen, dining room, play room, bathroom and parlor. Emily Crawford was nowhere in the house. "Captain," Elliot came back to the foyer, "There's nothing."

"Where is she?" Dr. Haung got closer. The captain still held Mrs. Crawford by the arm. She looked down- not willing to tell.

"Sharon," Cragen muttered, shocked, "What have you done?"


	7. Lifeless

"I'm running out of ideas." Olivia sighed as she, Elliot, Dr. Haung, and Captain Cragen sat in the squad car. They'd been searching for Emily for almost three hours with no luck. Mrs. Crawford has been escorted back to the precinct after she refused to say where Emily was located. Elliot had been in touch with Andrew and Michael's Godparents who were looking after them 'until things got straightened out'.

"Maybe there's something in here." Dr. Haung picked up the forgotten short story from the dashboard of the car. He examined it for a couple of minutes while everybody else sat in silence. "_Before they could whisk her away into the unknown, the orphan girl sprinted off into the wilderness. Many hours passed as she wandered. Finally, she came across a pack of wolves. At first she was frightened, but they accepted the orphan girl. After observing her newfound family, she learned how to function and survive as one of their own. She had found her new home." _The doctor quoted the story.

"What does that mean?" Elliot leaned forward from the backseat.

"Did Emily run away from her mother and to a place she felt safer?" Olivia asked confusingly.

"I don't think so. You see, Emily was very clever about how she wrote this. She didn't want it to be identical. She staggered herself throughout the aspects of the story. I think the wolf pack is supposed to be an alternative location where she feels safe." Dr. Haung thought out loud.

"But she didn't run away." Olivia reminded them.

"Right." Dr. Haung nodded and looked back to the story. "_When the mother wolf didn't emerge from the blazing flames of the forest fire, the alpha wolf led the pack back to their den. As the orphan girl began to enter, the alpha wolf turned and growled at her. Not understanding, the girl tried again. The only response the alpha wolf offered was another fierce growl and an intense stare. It was clear the orphan girl was no longer welcome." _Dr. Haung stopped again and thought for a second. "I think we might be able to find Emily in a place where she once felt safe. But after an unfortunate event, such as the death of her father, it became the exact opposite of the once loving and accepting place it used to be."

"Oh my God," Captain Cragen brought his hand to his head.

"Do you know where it might be?" Dr. Haung looked eagerly at the captain.

"Sharon and Derek owned a lake house. I'm not sure if they still do, but when Emily was younger they would take weekend trips down there a couple times a month. I went with a couple of time- Emily absolutely loved it there."

"Do you remember how to get there?" Elliot asked. The captain nodded his head, turned on the car, and took off.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

When they got to the lake house, every thing looked still from the curtains in the windows, to the tall grass in the front yard. It was clear that Mrs. Crawford hadn't been taking very good care of it. Captain Cragen approached the door and tried the door knob. It was locked.

"Elliot," The captain summoned. Elliot stepped forward and looked confused. "Help me."

"But Captain," Elliot shook his head.

"Knock this damn door down, Elliot." The captain ordered again. Elliot hesitated, but approached the door anyway. Elliot slammed his body against the door while everyone else watched with anticipation. The door gave out surprisingly easy. Captain Cragen pushed passed Elliot and into the house. Sitting in an arm chair in front of the television, eyes closed, was Emily Crawford. Her hands were tied together and her head lay gently against the cushion. The television was turned to some obnoxious cleaning product infomercial.

"Emily?" Cragen ran to her. He knelt down beside the chair and tapped her shoulder. Olivia did the same on the other side. "She's still breathing." Dr. Haung noted. Meanwhile, Elliot searched the house.

"We need a bus!" Olivia shouted into a walkie-talkie.

"Emily, wake up." Cragen shook her a bit harder, trying to do anything to see her eyes open. "It's Uncle Don. I'm here. It's ok." He kept talking. Olivia tried to set her hands free but couldn't get the rope to give way. She scurried to her feet and hurried to the lake house's kitchen. She yanked open every drawer until she found a sharp knife.

"Hold her hands away." Olivia instructed, pulling at the rope. Captain Cragen did as he was told and Olivia slid the blade through. It took a second, but soon Emily's hands were free.

"The house is clear." Elliot joined them back in the living room. Captain Cragen pulled Emily out of the chair and into his arms. The captain held her close to his chest and cradled her cautiously. She seemed fragile. Not the same girl he used to know. He couldn't help but wonder if he would ever know that girl again or if he had missed his chance.


	8. Loss

"Is she awake?" Elliot asked walking through the sliding glass doors of the hospital's fourth floor. Olivia sat, head hanging, in a plastic chair outside of room 439. The door was closed and the curtains on glass window were closed. Olivia shook her head sullenly, not even looking up. Elliot slid into the chair next to her and leaned back. "How's captain?"

"Considering he just came to the realization his best friend's wife is a monster and his Goddaughter has been suffering, not so great." Olivia sighed.

"How did Emily become unconscious?" Elliot asked.

"Trauma to the head." Olivia muttered.

"Are there any signs of permanent damage or memory loss?" Elliot rubbed his forehead.

"Won't know for sure until she wakes up." Olivia closed her eyes. "How is the crime scene?"

"They're taking in the rope from around Emily's hands. They said they might be able to get some good prints. But Casey says it might not be enough…. If the rope was from inside the lake house, Mrs. Crawford could have touched it when she purchased it or put it away." Elliot looked to his partner. "That means the only way we can know for sure…"

"Is if Emily tells us." Olivia finished her partner's sentence, exchanging a look with him. She sat up straight in her chair and then leaned into Elliot's side. He put his arm around her and they sat quietly…waiting.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Wake up," Cragen barked. Olivia and Elliot both jolted from their chairs. They had waited so long that they both drifted off to sleep- Olivia first and Elliot quickly after.

"Is Emily awake?" Olivia asked, rubbing her eyes.

"No," The captain looked to the tiled floor- a blue and white scattered pattern crawling down the hallway. "I need to get some coffee and take a little walk. Olivia, will you sit with her? God forbid she be alone if she wakes up." Olivia tried to offer her best supporting smile, but fell short due to her exhaustion. Instead, she nodded. For a couple of seconds, nobody moved. They all just stood, looking back and forth at one another. "Elliot, can you walk with me?"

"Sure." Elliot turned and put a hand on Olivia's shoulder. "Do you want anything?" Olivia shook her head and stepped into the dimly lit hospital room.

At first she didn't want to sit down. Olivia studied the cheap paintings hanging on the walls. The only one she found decent was the one of a delicate sunflower. She knew it was silly and probably only her tiredness thinking, but it kind of reminded her of Emily. The sunflower, bold and yellow, stood tall and glowing in an empty field of grass. The tips of its petals were wrinkling in and cracking and the stem was weathered, but with the suns rays' shining down on it…the flower was healing and still beautiful. '_Emily may be torn and cracked right now, but in the end, she will emerge beautifully.' _Olivia thought to herself. Finally, she gave in and took Captain Cragen's seat right next to the bed.

When Olivia sat down, she realized why she hadn't wanted to when she came in. Emily. Before, Olivia hadn't really had to look at Emily. She had busied herself so she wouldn't have to. But sitting here, in the hospital, directly next to the bed, in a chair angled towards her… Olivia was seeing Emily for the first time. Not the radiant Emily in the black and white Carver High School yearbook- but the beaten down, bruised Emily. Olivia found fascination in the small, quick movements of Emily's chest as she breathed in and out. Soon, everything in the room was in synch with those movements… Upon every breath the brittle girl's body indicated, Olivia wished Emily would wake up.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Captain, I'm sorry." Elliot cocked his head to look at his boss as they walked slowly down the hospital hallway.

"Stabler, I just need to talk." The captain admitted. "I've been sitting for hours in front of the daughter of the only man I've known well enough to call my best friend. I was supposed to look out for her… and now she's lying in a hospital bed unaware of anything around her. I just need to talk."

"Alright," Detective Stabler placed a supportive hand on the captain's back as they approached the café. Elliot led Captain Cragen to an empty table for two and they both sat down.

"When Emily was born, I was jealous. I know that sounds ridiculous that a forty-something year old man was jealous of a child… but I'd never known that kind of friendship before and I thought she would take Greg away from me." The captain laughed at himself. "When he told me I was the Godfather… God, I didn't know what to think. As it turned out, Emily was the best thing that ever happened to our friendship. She brought us closer and I thought of her as the daughter I never had." Elliot sat across the table, listening intently. "When Emily got to be about 10 or 11, I got busy. That's about when Andrew and Michael were extremely young. I got caught up in work and I let the one of the only things that actually mattered to me slip away."

There was a silence between the men. Cragen knew Elliot would understand seeing as he had been through something similar with his own children and wife. "It happens to the best of us." Elliot leaned over the table.

"When Greg died…" there was a pause "I was stunned. I went to the funeral and a part of me didn't want to face Emily or Sharon, because I was ashamed. I need to make this up to her. If Emily doesn't wake up…. I killed my friendship with Greg and I might as well of killed his daughter too." Cragen's voice cracked. Not a crying crack, but a mentally tired one.

"You can't think of it that way. There's no way you could have known." Elliot felt as if he was talking to one of the victims or witnesses he dealt with everyday rather than his boss and friend. And even if it was hard to come to terms with, even if this case was going to be difficult, he had to remember- for now, Cragen was a victim.


	9. Released

"I can't believe that woman got bail." Olivia sighed, sitting at her desk. Across from her sat Elliot. They had been sitting around all morning trying to busy themselves with paperwork and such, but nothing was working. Emily had been released from the hospital late the night before, and Olivia and Elliot were eagerly waiting for Captain Cragen to bring her into the squad room. They wanted more than anything to find out what was happening in the Crawford household.

"Well, the court takes into consideration that she has two other children to care for." Casey leaned against a desk across from them.

"There's nothing wrong with a woman involved in a _child_ abuse investigation getting bail and being allowed to go back home with her two other _children_?" Elliot leaned over his desk, clearly aggravated.

"Not as long as the other children haven't been subject to the abuse. As far as they can see, they've done the right thing by removing the allegedly abused child from the house. As long as Emily's with Cragen, she's safe. That's how they see it." Casey lowered her head. She didn't make the laws or demands, she just obeyed them. "The judge had social services check out the home, and interview the boys. The report came back clear. The social worker told the judge she had 'no doubt the boys would be fine in their mother's care'."

"We're fortunate Emily's head injury wasn't life threatening! What if we're not so lucky when Mrs. Crawford decides to take all of this out on one of those little boys?" Elliot asked loudly. His anger was getting the best of him, but Olivia didn't quiet him or try to calm him down. She felt he had a right to be upset.

"Elliot, I understand." Casey waved her arms in front of her. "What we need to do right now is focus on the investigation. We've already searched the crime scene and it was a bust. What we need now is for you guys to talk to Emily and see what she'll tell you. Then go from there."

"That's not all." Dr. Haung appeared in front of them.

"Psyche evaluations." Olivia stated looking down at her desk.

"Exactly." Dr. Haung smiled. "There has to be some kind of motive here. Remember when we entered the lake house and the TV was on?"

"That annoying cleaning commercial." Elliot remembered.

"Right. The fact that Mrs. Crawford left the TV on tells me that she was sympathetic. Even if Emily was unconscious, it shows that Mrs. Crawford considered that Emily would be all alone if she woke up. So she turned on the TV to keep her company." Dr. Haung explained.

"Are you sure?" Olivia questioned.

"It doesn't make sense any other way." Dr. Haung was confident.

"But that doesn't make sense at all? Child abusers aren't sympathetic." Elliot rolled his eyes.

"Or are they?" Dr. Haung tilted his head and shrugged.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

If you would have seen the way Emily Crawford entered the squad room, you would have never known that 24 hours earlier she was just waking up from a coma. Her skin had returned to its natural, dark complexion and her bouncy, chocolate brown curls were perfectly placed falling over her shoulders. There wasn't a single sign of shame, embarrassment, or confusion on her aura. Elliot saw her first.

"Liv," he whispered. When his partner looked up, he nodded towards the entry way. Olivia swiveled in her chair and examined the girl and an exhausted Cragen leading her. On Emily's left arm was a violet cast which almost matched in color to the bruise on the edge of her forehead.

"Olivia, Elliot." Cragen looked at both of them. Olivia stood first, then Elliot. "This is Emily." The girl smiled at them both but didn't step any further. Captain Cragen had a firm arm around her shoulder. She wasn't going out of his sight.


	10. Examine

"Are you sure she's ready for this?" Olivia glanced into the Captain's office where Emily Crawford sat, spinning around and around in her Godfather's chair.

"I'm sure she'll be fine." Captain Cragen nervously smiled.

"Did you bring in the medical report?" Elliot asked.

"Yeah, the whole record of her hospital stay is in this file." Cragen said, holding up a manila file folder.

"What about the documentation of all of her injuries?" Olivia squinted her eyes.

"I didn't get that." The captain admitted.

"Captain, it's required that in any child abuse case you have to have the child examined and any injuries or other indications of abuse have to be documented by a medical professional." Elliot basically quoted the rule.

"I know…. I just wasn't up to it. I didn't think she'd be comfortable with me taking her." The Captain looked down, ashamed.

"Don't worry," Olivia reassured him. "I'll take her in after a little while. Why don't you just take a couple of hours off, let me and Elliot take care of Emily."

"Ok. I need to stop by the house anyway and get some cloths for her." Captain turned back into his office and told Emily what was going on. She smiled, dismissed his insecurity, and went back to reclining in his chair.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"Did you know that frogs can't swallow without blinking?" Emily matter-of-factly stated. She followed it up with an intelligent smile. For over an hour, Olivia, Elliot and Emily had been sitting in balcony of the squad room. They had talked candidly about numerous subjects- just getting to know each other. Olivia and Elliot had been searching for perfect little tidbits of conversation that could lead them onto more information about the abuse.

"No, I didn't." Elliot laughed. He found fascination in her.

"My dad taught me that. He knew tons of little facts about the most random things. I always enjoyed hearing them." She reached her fingers into the edge of her cast to itch the skin beneath.

"Tell us about your dad." Olivia requested. "If you don't mind."

"I was really close to him." Emily smiled, remembering her father.

"What kind of things did you guys do together?" Elliot grinned at her, supportively.

"Everything." She laughed. "He was like my best friend. But my favorite thing to do with him was run."

"Why is that?" Olivia asked curiously.

"Because it was something we could do together. He needed to stay in shape for work. I'd tag along. We would run and talk at the same time. 'Easy bonding'- that's what he called it." Emily talked openly.

"Do you still run?" Olivia asked delicately. There was a pause, but Emily lit up again almost immediately.

"Not really. I tried. After my second or third time alone, I realized it wasn't as fun anymore. Its way easier when there's somebody cheering you on." Emily looked over the balcony and at the other detectives working at their desks.

"I'm sure you miss him a lot. What about your brothers… do they miss him?" Elliot rubbed the back of his neck.

"My dad wasn't as close to them as he was to me. What we had was special, and I was lucky to have it." Emily looked Elliot in the eye. She was confident in her relationship with her father.

"Why didn't Michael and Andrew have the same bond as you did with your dad?" Olivia crossed her legs under the table, gently brushing Elliot's.

"He was always busy working. Being a Sergeant is hard work. My dad took his job very seriously." Emily's eyebrows arched defensively, like she was defending Sergeant Crawford.

"I don't doubt that." Olivia leaned her head down to Emily's level.

"I wish he was still here," Emily's voice cracked. "When he was still here, things weren't as bad as they are now. With my mom."

"Emily, are telling us your mom abuses you?" Olivia slid her hand over the able and onto Emily's. Elliot moved forward in his seat, closer to them both in an attempt to make their table more private. Even if they had evidence of the abuse, nothing could help them more than Emily admitting it. After taking in a deep breath, Emily cocked her head slightly to the side.

"Yeah. I guess that's what I'm getting at." A single tear rolled down her check, but she didn't lower her head in shame or embarrassment. She was strong.

"Do you have any idea why your mother acts this way?" Elliot asked delicately. Emily sat there for a couple of seconds, thinking.

"I don't want to talk about it any more right now." She sighed. "Is that ok?"

"That's fine." Elliot assured her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"We can talk more about it later." Olivia explained. "Something else we need to do is take you to the hospital for an examination."

"An examination?" Emily asked, confused.

"It's just where they document and take pictures of all of your injuries, bumps, scratches." Elliot smiled as an attempt to comfort her.

"I have to do it by myself?" Emily asked.

"We'll go with you. There'll be nothing to worry about." Olivia hoped she would oblige.

"Will you stay with me the whole time?" Emily studied the table for a moment. Then she looked up at Olivia.

"Of course," Olivia answered warmly. And Emily Crawford took comfort in that. She didn't feel so alone anymore.


	11. Spontaneous

By the time Captain Cragen finally got back to the station house, it was late- almost eight-thirty. Olivia and Elliot had taken Emily to the hospital and then out to eat. They all seemed to be getting along pretty well. All Cragen cared about was the fact that Emily was smiling when he came back.

"Are you ready to go?" The Captain asked Emily. She sat in Elliot's chair, swiveling the chair from the left to the right. "Sorry I'm back so late."

"Not a big deal." Olivia reclined in her own chair.

"I need to tell Elliot something before I leave." Emily stood slipping on her shoes which were lying next to the desk. She hurried out into the hallway.

"How was she?" Cragen asked Olivia.

"Great. She's a really great girl, Captain." Olivia spoke.

"And the examination?" Cragen continued.

"Taken care of. I have the documents right here." She tapped a folder on her desk. She picked them up and offered them to him, but he waved her hand away.

"I'd rather not." He muttered. Olivia set the folder back down. "I'm still concerned about tonight."

"What's tonight?" Olivia sat forward in her chair.

"Just having her in my apartment. I've never had kids." Cragen looked to the floor. Olivia could tell this was all taking a toll on him. His attitude was changing but she couldn't blame him. The whole situation was overwhelming.

"You had her last night. Wasn't it ok?" Olivia asked.

"All she did was sleep last night. And when she woke up she took a shower and we came here. I didn't really have to say anything. I don't even know what to talk about with her." Captain Cragen thought back to when Emily was younger. How they never had trouble concoction some sort of conversation- whether it be about the bad guys Cragen caught at work or her upcoming dance recitals.

"She'll talk about anything, Captain. She's been talking to Elliot and me all day." Olivia didn't know if she was helping or making Cragen feel worse.

"I don't know her anymore." Cragen shook his head.

"Get to know her all over again. She needs you." Olivia patted Cragen on the back.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

"Elliot!" Emily smiled as she spotted him by the soda machine. He slid a green bill into the slot and pushed one of the buttons.

"Hey! What's going on?" he asked her. "I saw Captain on his way into the squad room. Bet you're excited to finally get out of here."

"Yeah, he's here to pick me up. But I wanted to tell you something before I left." She stood next to him.

"Sure. What's on your mind?" Elliot faced her and pulled her gently to the side of hallway as a group of detectives came running down the corridor.

"You remind me a lot of my dad." She grinned at the floor, almost embarrassed to be admitting it to him. Olivia had told Emily all about Elliot's brave encounters with pedophiles and murderers. Emily particularly loved the stories where Elliot got physical with the suspects. He was like a hero from comic book or something. She'd thought the exact same thing about her father.

"Thanks, Emily." Elliot wrapped his arm around her shoulder. It was a genuine compliment and he knew she meant it.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

"I like that your apartment has a pool." Emily stated as Cragen grabbed a duffle bag filled with her clothes from the trunk of his car. The pool was placed neatly in the middle of the apartment complex's courtyard. "Do you ever swim in it?"

"No." Captain answered plainly.

"Have you ever wanted to swim in it?" Emily asked trying to continue the conversation.

"Not really. I'm usually busy working. And when I come home I like to relax." Cragen locked the car and started leading Emily down the side walk. Emily eyed the pool the whole way up the stair case and down the outer balcony of the apartment complex. Even though it was February, there was no cover on the pool. The water for the most part was clear despite its greenish tint.

"Emily," Cragen called. She hadn't even realized he had unlocked his apartment door and gone inside. She took one last quick glance at the pool before hurrying in.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

It was late in the night when Captain Cragen awoke to the sound of a closing door. At first, he didn't realize what was happening, but after thinking for a second- he knew. The captain frantically jumped from his bed and grabbed a t-shirt from the floor. He dodged stray objects and sharp corners as he scrambled through his apartment. He glanced to the couch- just as he suspected, Emily was gone. Once outside, he looked down the balcony but was greeted only by the silence of the other tenant's doors. He flung himself towards the rail and looked down into the courtyard. When he finally spotted Emily, she was standing at the ledge of the pool. She eyes the water carefully.

"Emily!" The captain called but the words escaped his mouth too late. She had already leapt into the frigid, green water. Next thing he knew, he was running. Around the balcony. Down the stairs. Across the courtyard. When he finally reached the water, Emily had emerged and was struggling to pull her self over the concrete side. Her body shivered and shook. Cragen grabbed her underarms and yanked her out of the pool. She fought his grip and rested her body face up on the concrete. Her pajamas were drenched, not to mention the cast on her arm.

"Jesus Christ!" Cragen yelled. He was surprised none of his neighbors had come out of their apartments to see what was going on. Emily didn't say a word. "What the hell were you thinking?" She just laid there. Cragen scooped her up off the concrete and carried her back up to his apartment. He gently set Emily down on the carpet and hurried to get a towel. She was still weak from her head injury and this certainly wasn't helping. When he returned with the towel, she hadn't moved. He sat her up and wrapped the towel around her cold body.

"I just wanted to do something spontaneous." Emily muttered as she shivered under the towel. Captain Cragen didn't want to be mad at her. So instead of watching helplessly as she fought the shaking, he hugged her. He held her in his arms until his body heat started to warm her and until she stopped shaking and composed herself. And even after, he continued to hold her- because it felt nice to have a child to hold.


	12. Care

"Sit here." Captain Cragen pointed to a chair outside of his office. Emily quietly obeyed and the captain whirled into his office and closed the door. Olivia and Elliot looked up from their desks. Emily sat in the chair looking down at the floor. Today the cast on her arm wasn't violet. It was turquoise blue.

"What happened to your cast?" Elliot got up from his desk and walked toward her. Emily looked up at him and then back at her arm.

"I got it wet last night so I had to get a new one." Emily answered quietly. She felt guilty for making her Uncle Don upset. The Captain opened up his office door and looked at Elliot.

"Come into my office," He ordered Elliot. "You too!" He pointed to Olivia who was watching from her desk.

"What's going on?" Olivia asked as she entered the office, closing the door behind her.

"There's something wrong with her." The captain insisted. He pointed to the wall of his office, Emily was sitting outside.

"What d'ya mean?" Elliot asked standing in front of the captain's desk.

"I woke up in the middle of the night and she was gone." Captain shook his head. He was clearly frazzled. He remembered how he had decided not to be mad… and honestly, he wasn't. He was concerned. Cragen had already doubted his ability to care for Emily and this was a clear example of those doubts.

"Where was she?" Olivia looked back to the door as if trying to glance at Emily.

"She decided to take a late night swim. When I carried her back up to the apartment she claimed she wanted to do something spontaneous." Cragen didn't understand. Both detectives were quiet. "I've called in Haung. He's going to observe while you guys interview Emily."

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

"We just need to ask you some questions." Olivia explained as she and Elliot led Emily into an interrogation room.

"In here?" Emily asked as she eyed the cold room.

"Yeah, sorry about that." Elliot took a seat at the table in the center of the room while Olivia set up a tape recorder. Emily watched as Olivia sat too, but hesitated by the door.

"Who's going to be behind there?" Emily pointed at the double sided mirror. Elliot and Olivia exchanged looks.

"Your Uncle Don and a psychiatrist." Olivia finally answered. She didn't see any sense in hiding the truth… or even worse… lying.

"A psychiatrist?" Emily gasped.

"Yeah. He's just observing." Elliot watched as Emily looked suspiciously at the black glass. "Come on, sit down."

"What if I say something wrong?" Emily tried not to make too big of a deal out of it.

"As long as you tell the truth, it's impossible to say the wrong thing." Olivia assured her. Finally Emily gave in and took her seat across from the detectives. She began to eye the empty seat next to her. Olivia saw what was happening and quickly changed seats so Emily wasn't sitting alone anymore.

"Ready?" Elliot asked, his hand hovering over the record button on the tape recorder.

"I guess." Emily focused on his finger as it came down on the button. It was an old recorder. She could tell by the dust that was collecting in the crevices, and the soft whirring noise it made as film in the tape turned.

"Alright." Elliot settled back into his seat. "Emily, do you remember the other day when we found you with your hands tied together at your family's lake house?"

"No." Emily answered plainly.

"Why not?" Elliot continued. Emily looked suspiciously over her shoulder at the glass mirror.

"It's ok. Just focus on the questions." Olivia tried to comfort her.

"I was unconscious. That's why I don't remember." Emily answered.

"Do you know how you became unconscious? The doctor said you had head trauma." Elliot rested his hands on the table, looking delicately at Emily.

"I fell down the stairs and hit my head on the banister." Emily looked to her lap.

"You remember falling down the stairs?" Elliot clarified.

"Yes. I remember tripping on one of the stairs. I tumbled down the rest. Then my head hit the banister. For a second I was still conscious but then everything went black."

"Do you remember seeing anything before you went unconscious?" Elliot kept staring. Emily just sat still. "Anything at all?"

"My mom came down after me."

"Why did you trip down the stairs?" Olivia took over the question asking.

"I was trying to get…away." Emily hesitated.

"What were you trying to get away from?" Olivia scooted closer.

"My mother. She was angry at me."

"Why was she angry?"

"She's always angry at me."

"_Always_?"

"Yes. Always."

"So you don't remember ever being the lake house? Me untying your hands? Your Uncle Don carrying you to the ambulance?"

"No. I don't remember any of that." Emily was getting confused.

"That's alright…Why do you have a cast on your arm?" Elliot started again.

"My wrist is broken." Emily looked at her cast.

"Was it broken before you fell down the stairs?"

"Yes."

"Your mother didn't take you to have it examined?"

"No. She did not."

"Why didn't she?"

"Because she's the one who broke it."

"How did your mother break your wrist, Emily?" Emily waited a second and Olivia placed a hand on her back supportively.

"She grabbed my arm and held it. Her grip was so tight." Emily paused, tears welling in her eyes. "Then she slowly started to twist my hand. She just kept going. I begged her to stop, but she didn't. Then something popped in my wrist and she let go."

"That must have hurt. How long ago was that?"

"Like a week and a half."

"When the doctor examined you at the hospital, he found a lot of bruises and burns. Did your mother do all of this to you?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"The burns are from cigarettes. The bruises… mainly from kicking or hitting."

"Can you tell us where most of these injuries are located?"

"In places you wouldn't normally see. Like my stomach or back."

"When did your mother start doing this to you?"

"A few months before my dad died. He got really busy with work. She would get upset when he wasn't home on time." She stopped, but Elliot and Olivia watched her- wanting more. "At first, it was all verbal. How much she hated that I spent up all his time. How I was the reason he never spent time with my brothers. How if I wasn't here everybody else would be happier."

"When did it become physical?"

"Their wedding anniversary- December 28th. My dad had been called back into work. She had spend all afternoon cooking his favorite food. He hurried out the door and I was sitting at the table with my brothers." Emily went silent.

"It's ok. Keep going." Olivia urged her gently.

"She looked upset one second. She took my brothers upstairs and when she came back. When she came back, she was furious. Throwing pots, pans, and plates around the kitchen. She told me to stand up. When I did, she slapped me so hard across the face that I thought I was going to fall over. Then she grabbed a pan and threw it at me."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"It was livable at first. I thought it would stop… but when my dad died… it got even worse. The worse it got… the worse I thought it would be if I told."

For the next hour, Emily continued to tell Elliot and Olivia stories of what her mother had done to her. From the times her mother had withheld food and made her beg to the times she had made Emily sit silently as she burned her with a cigarette. It was all incredibly sick and sad. Behind the mirror, Captain Cragen stood sullenly. He didn't understand at all how this could have happened. He hated hearing about it. He didn't want to think about it.

"It makes sense." Dr. Haung spoke as the two men stood watching into the interrogation room.

"What makes sense?" Cragen turned to him.

"That she wanted to do something spontaneous." Dr. Haung cocked his head. "She's been under the control of her mother for so long. She used last night as an opportunity to seize that control back. It was her own way of breaking free."

"What do we do from here? Why would a mother ever do that to her child?" Cragen asked.

"I think I should talk to Mrs. Crawford. Find out what triggered all this. Usually there is a motive behind child abuse- whether it be alcoholism, jealousy, or anything else." Dr. Haung suggested.

"I'll see what I can do."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"Olivia, I'd like to see you in my office." Captain whispered as Olivia, Elliot and Emily filed out of the interrogation room. Elliot and Emily watched as the two entered the office and closed the door. Then they shrugged to each other and went back to the squad room.

"Yes, Captain?" Olivia stood close to the door.

"I need a huge favor from you." Captain admitted.

"What is it?" Olivia stepped closer to the desk.

"Mrs. Crawford is going to be interviewed by Dr. Haung. I'd like to stay here and see how that goes, but I can't have Emily anywhere on the premise. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind…" Captain stopped.

"Of course not." Olivia finished for him. "Do you just want me to drop her off at your apartment later tonight?"

"That's the other thing." Captain looked at Olivia, not sure if he should continue. "I know this might be some what inappropriate, but I shouldn't be caring for a fifteen year old girl."

"You want Emily to stay with _me_?"


	13. Confidential

"Munch, did you know that the average office worker spends 50 minutes a day looking for lost paperwork?" Emily stated as she stood in front of John's desk. Olivia opened the door to the Captain's office and stepped out.

"I can honestly say I didn't." Munch glanced up from his computer screen.

"Maybe that's why you never get any work done." Fin laughed.

"Emily, your Uncle Don wants to see you." Olivia approached the three. Emily looked to the empty door way of the Captain's office. She slowly made her way through the squad room, unsure of what he would say to her. They hadn't spoken much since last night's debacle.

"Hey." Emily quietly let herself into the room and stood delicately in front of Cragen's desk. He gave all of his best effort to smile and asked her to sit down.

"I know that things are hard right now." Captain started. "And you need somebody to take good care of you and look after you."

"If this is about last night, Uncle Don," Emily interrupted him but he brought a hand up to stop her.

"I think it might be best if you stayed with Olivia. Just until things get straightened out with your mom." Captain finished. Emily thought about what he was saying but it took her a minute to comprehend it. She liked Olivia and all, but she barely knew her. "Are you comfortable with that?"

"I suppose…But will I come back to you after all of this?" Emily looked up at her Godfather- holding her breath for his answer. Captain Cragen let out a deep breath.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there." Cragen finally answered. "For now, I think its best that we just take this one step at a time."

……………………………………………………………………………………………...

"I've never had a teenager in my apartment." Olivia admitted as she and Emily rode the elevator down to the lobby of the station house. "I have a nice little living room though. And one of the most comfortable couches! I think you'll like it."

"Thanks for having me, I guess." Emily felt as if maybe she were intruding. "Did my Uncle Don shove me on you because of what happened last night?"

"No. Not at all. I'm happy to have you." Olivia offered a friendly smile. Emily returned it because, after all, she didn't want to be a grouch or a burden.

"You know, I can cook!" Emily exclaimed.

"Oh really?" Olivia laughed and looked at the girl.

"Maybe I could make dinner for you. In exchange for you letting me stay with you?" Emily suggested.

"I would love for you to cook for me. I haven't eaten a home cooked meal since Thanksgiving!" Olivia enthused. Just then, as Emily pushed open the door and stepped out into the cold air, she got a glimpse of a person. A familiar person coming up the stairs of the station house. Heading towards the same door she had just open. Before her mind could register who it was, Olivia wrapped her arm around Emily's shoulder and maneuvered her out of the way so she couldn't see. Emily tried to turn around to verify what she had thought she's seen, but Olivia kept a firm grip on her. "Just keep walking, Emily. Just keep going."

Olivia led Emily almost a block before either one of them said anything. Emily spoke first. "Was that my mom?"

"Yeah, it was." Olivia let go of her.

"I wasn't prepared for that." Emily watched the gravel as she walked over it.

"Me neither." Olivia shook her head.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"This is ridiculous." Mrs. Crawford flailed her arms as Elliot escorted her into the interrogation room. Dr. Haung filed in quickly behind them. Elliot let Mrs. Crawford to a seat and then made his way back to the door.

"If you need me, I'll be right out here." Elliot pointed to the area behind the two sided mirror.

"Thanks." Dr. Haung smiled at him, sitting down across from Mrs. Crawford.

"I don't understand why I'm here. I told you I didn't touch my daughter." Mrs. Crawford looked at Dr. Haung suspiciously.

. "We're not talking about that today."

"Then what are we talking about?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Yes. In order for me to be able to give professional advice during the trial, I need to know a bit about you and your daughter."

"Did you already interview Emily?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because she's my daughter."

"Fair enough. Yes. I already observed her interview."

"What did she say?"

"That's confidential. Do you miss having Emily in the house?"

"That girl is a nuisance."

"Why do you say that?"

"She's always acting out. I had barely any control of her. I hope whoever is taking care of her now is having better luck."

"So you aren't to blame for any of Emily's reported injuries?"

"That's right. She's just looking for attention- has been ever since her father died. He did nothing but spoil her."

"Do you miss your husband?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I miss him. He was the love of my life."

"How was your marriage around the time of his death?"

"On the rocks… but everybody goes through a rough patch."

"Why were things difficult?"

"He was working a lot. He was hardly spending any time with his boys."

"And Emily?"

"He always made time for her. Always."

"Was that a problem?"

"Only when it interfered with his activity in our other children's lives."

"So why else was your marriage having trouble?"

"That was it. Gregory had been very distant."

"Was that frustrating for you?"

"It would have been for anybody. All I wanted was for him to be home. But it was clear he wasn't happy there. I tried everything I could. I wanted more than anything for him to be happy again."

"Do you have any idea as to why your husband wasn't satisfied with his home life?"

"No. Not the slightest clue. I'd always thought we had the picture perfect family. I thought we were lucky ones."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"My mom doesn't like me anymore." Emily collapsed down onto her make shift bed. Olivia sat at the opposite end on the couch. All evening they'd been dodging talking about what had happened out side of the station house. They'd talked breezily about light subjects like the weather and overrated brands of tennis shoes.

"That's not true. Your mother loves you." Olivia straightened up.

"She_ loved_ me." Emily sighed.

"No." Olivia corrected her.

"How would you know?" Emily wasn't angry. She didn't yell. She simply asked.

"I know this might be a little hard to believe, but I know how this feels." Olivia made eye contact with Emily.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked.

"My mom was an alcoholic. She slapped me around, called me a lot of names. I was a teenager, like you. Those were some of the most difficult days of my life." Olivia admitted.

"I'm sorry." Was all Emily could think to say.

"You're not alone here. And my mother… she did love me. Even though she wasn't always the best at showing it. She didn't mean what she did to me."

"You really think so?" Emily asked solemnly.

"I have to think so."

"Is that how you survived?" Emily asked, truly wanting to know the answer.

"That. And I found people who really did care about me. And knew the right ways to show it."

"What if I don't have any of those?" Emily averted her eyes.

"You do, Emily." Olivia scooted closer to her and grabbed her hand. Their eyes met briefly. "You do."


	14. Theory

"Doctor?" A light voice came from the door. Dr. George Haung looked up from his desk. Standing in the door frame was Mrs. Crawford. She had dark circles under her eyes and her face was tired. Dr. Haung did nothing but look at her. What could she want?

"Um, may I speak with you?" the woman asked. Dr. Haung nodded and she stepped in. Unsure of where to go next, she stood helplessly in the center of the office.

"You can sit here." The doctor led her to the back of his office where there was a couch and a couple of lounge chairs. She followed him and sat quickly in one of the chairs. Dr. Haung did the same.

"What's this all about?" he asked her.

"I didn't say a couple of things that I thought I should have earlier." She started. "I thought I would sound ridiculous… but I guess that could only help me now."

"Go on." Dr. Haung cocked his head and listened.

"Ever since my husband died, and a little bit before that, I've felt different." Mrs. Crawford was talking slowly, hesitantly. She seemed a bit calmer and open now than she had been earlier.

"Different how?"

"My husband started spending less and less time at home. And I started to miss him. It was horrible. I felt alone and angry. When he died… it got worse."

"Is that why you started to abuse Emily?"

"Yes. Those feelings became unbearable. I couldn't take it anymore. I needed to let it out."

"Was there anything else in the beginning that set you off other than your husband's absence?" There was a silence in the room as Mrs. Crawford thought. "If there is, you need to tell me."

"I told my husband," She paused. "That he wasn't the father of my sons."

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

"The only food a cockroach won't eat is cucumber." Emily smiled as she sliced a cucumber on the counter in Olivia's kitchen.

"How do you know all this?" Olivia laughed. She leaned against the island in the center of the room and watched as Emily worked.

"My dad would tell me things like that all the time. He was_ really_ smart." Emily remembered her father.

"Why? Just random?" Olivia thought of all the random facts Emily had shared with her over the past day and a half.

"For a long time, I didn't know." Emily turned to Olivia, cucumber in hand. "But I think I do now."

"Really?" Olivia raised an eyebrow. Emily offered the paper towel of cucumber slices in Olivia's direction and she took one.

"Probably so that I could share them with people like you- people I really like."

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"You think it's what?" Casey wrinkled her nose as Dr. Haung tried to explain.

"You're saying this is excusable?" Captain Cragen widened his eyes.

"No. What I'm saying is that even though it's very rare, Mrs. Crawford's abuse towards her daughter could all be caused by grief." Dr. Haung stated.


End file.
